Rich Ross Joined Company: 1997 (re-joined 2007) First Improv Class: 1993 with Fratelli Bologna at someones house First BATS Class: 1994 with Rebecca Stockley BATS Coach: Since 1996 Other BATS Service: Sunday Player Rep Website: www.stickycricket.com   MySpace site: www.myspace.com/ulufeke    Contact: company@improv.org Rich began his performing career in high school as a prop comic. After college, he discovered that performing paid better than any work a Philosophy degree could generate, so he moved to San Francisco and set up shop. In 1991, he teamed up with Bay Area fixture Scott Meltzer and co-founded the juggling team Monkey Wrench - the comedy explosion.

In addition to being corporate sellouts, together they opened for such acts as The Smothers Brothers, John "Cougar" Mellencamp, and Weird Al Yankovic, and appeared on the nationally syndicated Children's Miracle Network Telethon, Good Morning America as well as the Primus video "Mr. Krinkle".Rich says he's most proud of his performances at Disneyland and Folsom State Prison.

Rich first experienced improv at a party attended by Fratelli Bologna. Soon after, Rich started with BATS classes, the first ever BATS Summer School, and then inhaled as much improv as possible. After several years performing with the Sunday Players, Rich joined the BATS main stage company for the first time in 1997.

Rich has performed improv from Calgary, Canada to Helsinki, Finland. He was a founding member of Start Trekkin' - an improvised parody of the original Star Trek universe, and has guest starred with Fratelli Bologna, and True Fiction Magazine. Rich is also the author of A Practical Guide to Gorilla Theater and Micetro, available through www.improvpress.com.

In 2003 Rich took a hiatus from performing in order to become full-time parent to his daughter Kalin. His "6 to 18 month" sabbatical ended up being 4 years long, but he was able to keep his improv chops up by teach classes, attending summer sessions with Keith Johnstone, and guesting in BATS Improv shows. In 2007, Rich was honored to return to BATS Improv as a member of the main stage company.

Rich also does a bunch of other stuff. He is currently testing for his 2nd degree black belt in the Korean martial art of Kuk Sool Won. He scuba dives and makes underwater movies. In his "spare time" he breeds cephalopods, and maintains a 300 gallon live coral reef system in his living room. Rich is active in the reef aquarium community and has participated in global efforts to promote the captive propagation of aquarium critters.


Q&A With Rich Ross

First BATS Show: Early 1994 at the old Sears building

Favorite Formats: Gorilla Theater, Theatersports, Improvised Shakespeare, long-form

Best Thing to Happen on the BATS Stage: The most recent moment.

Improv Advice: Boldly make mistakes, be changed

Artistic Influences: The Smothers Brothers, Beyond the Fringe, Cartoons

Favorite Movie: Star Wars, Raising Arizona, Serenity, Shawshank Redemption

Favorite Music: Soul Coughing, XTC, They Might Be Giants, X, The Police, Fishbone, The Red Hot Chili Peppers

Favorite Music: Anything performed on the Street & badly performed, written and produced professional musicals